Salvia plant named &#39;Bumbleberry&#39;

ABSTRACT

The new and distinct cultivar of perennial  Salvia  plant named ‘Bumbleberry’ characterized by its small strong purplish red-colored flowers densely arranged in verticils, with compact rounded habit and stiff, upright, heavily-branched stems and strong vigorous growth rate and small gray-green foliage.  Salvia  ‘Bumbleberry’ is winter-hardy and especially useful for landscaping and containerized ornamentals by itself or in combination with other plants.

Botanical denomination: Salvia nemorosa (Linnaeus).

Cultivar designation: ‘Bumbleberry’.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

The present invention relates to a new and distinct cultivar ofornamental sage plant hereinafter referred to by the cultivar nameSalvia ‘Bumbleberry’ or as the new plant. The new plant was the resultof an insect pollination of the proprietary, unreleased, non-patentedhybrid known as 12-98-1 times a sibling of 12-98-1 as part of thehybridizing program at a wholesale perennial nursery in Zeeland, Mich.,USA in late spring of 2013. The seeds from the cross were harvestedmid-summer of 2013 and the single specific seedling that developed intothe new Salvia was assigned the breeder code 13-64-12 at the end of theevaluation process at the same nursery in the summer of 2015. The firstasexual propagation was performed in the summer of 2015 by shoot tipcuttings at the same nursery in Zeeland, Mich. ‘Bumbleberry’ has proventhat it is stable and reliably produces true to type plants insuccessive generations of asexual propagation.

No plants of Salvia ‘Bumbleberry’ have been sold or disclosed in thiscountry, or anywhere in the world, by this or any name, more than oneyear prior to the filing of this application, with the exception of thatwhich was sold or disclosed either directly or indirectly from theinventor and within one year from the filing of this application.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

Plants of Salvia ‘Bumbleberry’ have not been observed under all possibleenvironmental conditions. The phenotype may vary somewhat withvariations in environment such as temperature, nutrition and lightintensity without, however, any variance in genotype.

Salvia ‘Bumbleberry’ can be most closely compared to ‘Sensation Rose’U.S. Plant Pat. No. 18,230. The new plant is slightly taller in habit,the foliage is larger and the flower is a strong purplish red ratherthan light purple to light reddish purple. Comparison with the specificfemale parent is not possible as the female was not retained. Comparisonwith the possible male parent, is not possible as the exact male parentis now known or maintained. Compared with ‘May Night’ (not patented),the new plant has more purplish red-colored flowers and more compacthabit and lower height.

The following characteristics in combination distinguish Salvia‘Bumbleberry’ as a new and distinct cultivar:

-   -   1. Small, strong purplish red-colored flowers densely arranged        in tight verticils;    -   2. Compact rounded habit and stiff, upright, heavily-branched        stems;    -   3. Strong, vigorous and winter-hardy;    -   4. Small, rugose, gray-green foliage.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

The photographs of the new plant demonstrate the unique traits and theoverall appearance of Salvia ‘Bumbleberry’. The colors are as accurateas reasonably possible with color reproductions. Variation in ambientlight spectrum, source and direction may cause the appearance of minorvariation in color. The plant used in the photographs was a two-year oldplant grown in an open, full-sun trial garden at a wholesale perennialnursery in Zeeland, Mich. with supplemental water and fertilizer whenneeded. No stem pinching or plant growth regulators have been used.

FIG. 1 shows the plant habit in full flower in a landscape.

FIG. 2 shows a close-up of the flower scape with the buds and uniquestrong purplish red color.

DETAILED BOTANICAL DESCRIPTION

The following descriptions and color references except where commondictionary terms are used are based on the 2015 edition of The RoyalHorticultural Society Colour Chart. Salvia ‘Bumbleberry’ has not beenobserved under all possible environments. The phenotype may varyslightly with different growing environments such as temperature, light,fertility, soil pH, moisture and plant maturity levels, but without anychange in the genotype. The following observations and size descriptionsare based on two-year old plants growing in an outdoor full-sun trialgarden at a wholesale perennial nursery in Zeeland, Mich. Plants weregiven supplemental water and fertilizer but no plant growth regulatorswere used.

-   Botanical classification: Salvia nemorosa (Linnaeus);-   Parentage: Female or seed parent is the unreleased non-patented    proprietary hybrid known as 12-98-1; the male or pollen parent was a    non-patented proprietary sibling of 12-98-1; the proprietary hybrids    were both offspring of a cross of ‘Sensation Rose’ and ‘May Night’;-   Plant habit: Winter-hardy herbaceous perennial; multi-stemmed,    compact, with basal and cauline foliage, and flowers in several    tightly arranged verticils on heavily-branched upright racemes    displayed above foliage; flowering in panicles about 30.0 cm tall    and about 40.0 cm wide at the fullest point about 18.0 cm above    soil; foliage extends about two-thirds of the way up the stems;-   Propagation: By herbaceous tip cuttings; time to produce a rooted    stems about two weeks;-   Growth rate: Rapid, vigorous, finishing in from a 25 mm plug to    flower in one-gallon pot in about 10 to 12 weeks, and flowering in a    one-gallon pot from a dormant bare-root one-year-old plant in about    6 to 8 weeks;-   Root description: Fine, well-branched; color dependent on age and    soil type, from cream to dark tan in color;-   Foliage: Opposite, simple, rugose, ovate; glabrous to sparsely    puberulent abaxial and glabrous adaxial; acute apex and base cordate    to rounded; margin crenate; leaf blades about 9.4 cm long and 3.5 cm    across, decreasing in size distally; average about 7.5 cm long and    2.6 cm across;-   Foliage fragrance: Faint sage fragrance;-   Foliage color: Mature adaxial surface nearest RHS 137A, mature    abaxial surface between RHS 147B and RHS 146A; expanding adaxial    base nearest RHS 144A and distally nearest RHS 137B, expanding    abaxial nearest RHS 138B;-   Venation: Reticulate; impressed on adaxial side and ribbed on    abaxial side; puberulent abaxial and glabrous adaxial;-   Vein color: Mature adaxial midrib nearest RHS 145D with main and    secondary veins nearest RHS 147D near midrib and becoming nearest    RHS 137A distally, and mature abaxial midrib and main veins nearest    RHS 145C; expanding adaxial midrib nearest RHS 148D with main and    secondary veins nearest RHS 194A and expanding abaxial midrib RHS    148C with main and secondary veins nearest RHS 148C;-   Petiole: Concavo-convex, ciliate along margin and sparsely    puberulent abaxial and adaxial surfaces; to about 4.5 cm long and    4.0 mm wide at base, average 3.2 cm long and 3.5 mm wide at base;-   Petiole color: Adaxial center nearest RHS 145C and margins nearest    RHS 137C; abaxial center nearest RHS 145C and margins nearest RHS    137C;-   Stems: Quadrangular; pubescent, to 5.0 cm long before flowers and    4.5 mm across at base;-   Stem color: Nearest RHS 138A;-   Nodes: Eight before flowering verticils; average internode length    6.3 mm; color same as stem;-   Flower: Perfect; bilabiate; zygomorphic; verticillate with flowering    generally beginning at lower verticils and advancing up the scape,    not all flowers at same verticil opening at the same time; with    lower lip projected downward almost vertically and parallel to stem    and hood petal upwardly at about 45 degree angle above horizontal;    self-cleaning, petals not persistent; flowering beginning late    spring for about four weeks and repeating if initial scapes removed;-   Flower longevity: About four days on the plant or as cut flower;-   Flower fragrance: None detected;-   Flower buds one to two days prior to anthesis: Ellipsoidal with    narrow basal tube, rounded apex; exposed petals puberulent; calyx    carinate and micro puberulent; about 8.0 mm long, 2.5 mm tall and    1.5 mm wide;-   Flower bud color: Exposed petals nearest RHS 64A; calyx top nearest    RHS 187B and below RHS 146D, calyx veins nearest RHS 187B;-   Flowers size: About 13.0 mm long from base of calyx to tip of    exserted style, 8.5 mm tall and 5.5 mm wide; clustered at verticils    with about six flowers per verticil;-   Petals: Bilabiate corolla; Upper hood projecting upwardly to about    45 degrees from horizontal and lower labium drooping producing an    angle between the two petals of about 90 degrees;-   Hood (upper) petal: Slightly arcuate to falcate in distal half;    vertically conduplicate in distal 7.0 mm, with emarginate apex and    basal 6.0 mm fused into tube 2.0 mm diameter at base and 3.0 mm    diameter at petal separation; puberulent abaxial, glabrous adaxial;    13.0 mm long, 3.0 mm tall and 1.0 mm across;-   Labium (lower) petal: Abaxial puberulent, glabrous adaxial;    consisting of three apical lobes, two upwardly projecting lateral    lobes about 2.0 mm long and 1.5 mm wide at base, each lobe with    rounded apex; one central, obdeltoid, distally involute lobe about    3.5 mm long 6.0 mm wide with rounded apex; about 10.0 mm long fused    into tube in basal 6.0 mm, 5.0 mm wide at the widest portion and 2.5    mm tall;-   Petal color: Abaxial hood between RHS 71D and RHS 70B; adaxial hood    nearest RHS 72D; labium central lobe adaxial nearest RHS 77A and    abaxial nearest RHS N80A; labium side lobes adaxial nearest RHS    NN74C and abaxial nearest RHS NN74D; fused base abaxial proximal    region nearest RHS N155B, distal dorsal side lighter than RHS 70D    and ventral side nearest RHS 85A; adaxial tube distally nearest RHS    84D ventral and lighter than RHS 75D dorsally with base nearest RHS    N155B;-   Androecium: Two, with diminutive trigger mechanism; fused with    labium, contained within hood petal;    -   -   Filaments.—Two; adnate to petal about 4.0 mm from base and            curved downward inside hood petal; glabrous; about 3.0 mm            long and about 0.2 mm diameter; adnate about 4.0 mm from            base of labium petal; color nearest RHS 76D.        -   Anther.—Glabrous, ellipsoidal; about 1.0 mm long and about            0.5 mm diameter; longitudinal, dorsifixed; color blend            nearest RHS N77C.        -   Pollen.—Globose, less than 0.5 mm circumference; color            nearest RHS 8C.        -   Trigger mechanism.—About 1.0 mm long, curved; color nearest            RHS 76D.-   Gynoecium: One, curved around inside of hood petal; total about 1.2    cm long;    -   -   Style.—About 9.0 mm long and less than 0.5 mm diameter;            color nearest RHS NN155C at base, darkening distally to            nearest RHS N82A before stigma split.        -   Stigma.—Bifid curved in the terminal 1.5 mm; apex pointed;            color nearest RHS 83C.        -   Ovary.—Superior; about 1.0 mm diameter; color nearest RHS            145A.        -   Fruit.—One to four nutlets per flower; ellipsoidal to            spherical; about 1.0 mm diameter; color nearest RHS 202A.-   Calyx: Five sepals; three upper and two lower, campanulate, apex    acute; fused in basal 3.0 mm; persistent; tube about 5.0 mm long,    3.0 mm tall and 2.0 mm wide; lower cleft about 2.0 mm deep between    lobes and upper and lower set; upper set of three fused to closer    than 0.5 mm of apex;-   Sepal color: Abaxial nearest RHS 144A with veins and dorsal portion    exposed to intense sun blushed with nearest RHS 187A; adaxial base    nearest RHS 145D;-   Bracts: Each verticil subtended by two opposite bracts; apex    acuminate, base truncate, shape nearly cordate; margin entire,    ciliolate, and glabrous above and below; bract size up to 7.0 mm    long and 5.0 mm wide, decreasing distally; color of both surfaces    nearest RHS 145C with blushing and veins nearest RHS N186C;-   Peduncles: Quadrangular in cross section, strong; mostly upright;    flowering in peduncle up to 25 cm tall and 10.0 cm across; finely    puberulent; heavily branched with opposite branches at about 45    degrees above horizontal at the three nodes below flowers; branches    to about 10.0 cm long and 2.0 mm across; average space between    verticils about 1.5 cm; about 330 flowers per inflorescence;-   Peduncle color: Nearest RHS 138A in upper and lower regions;-   Pedicels: Terete; puberulent; about 2.0 mm long and 0.5 mm diameter;    horizontal to about 30 degrees above horizontal;-   Pedicel color: Blend nearest RHS N77D;-   Disease and pest resistance: Plants of Salvia ‘Bumbleberry’ perform    best with adequate moisture and good drainage but are fairly drought    tolerant once established; hardy from USDA zone 3 to 8; resistance    to diseases and pests beyond that common to Salvia has not been    noted;

It is claimed:
 1. The new and distinct perennial Salvia plant named‘Bumbleberry’ as herein described and illustrated useful for landscapingas a specimen plant, en masse or as a cut flower.